Speakers
- Dr Louise Milne
- Dr Kelly Brown
Date of Recording
October 10, 2025
Available Until
October 9, 2026
Questions and Answers from the webinar
Question |
Answer |
| I can imagine that one of the reasons parents would still want their children to have smartphones is so they can be tracked. What would you say to these parents? | Risk associated with the real world has NOT increased over the last 40 years, our perceptions have. Allowing our children to negotiate the real world is associated with increased resilience and our parental fears should NOT limit our children’s development. Tracking does Not increase their safety, access to screens does make them less safe – we need to be stronger and cope with the parental anxiety for their best interests. Dr Sarah Williams Southampton Children’s and Solent west CAMHS EDT |
| When Gen X were growing up, they were watching hours of per night TV. Has screen time actually changed over time, or what type of screen? | The problem with current screen time for children is the time spent, the content they are looking at and the people they have contact with.There is a huge difference between watching tv or a movie as a family or with friends compared to what our young people are currently doing which is spending a lot of time alone with a screen. The content they are looking at has also changed and is innapropriate and dangerous. Apps allow strangers to have access to our children, influence them and even meet with them. |
| I remember a news story not long ago about a rise in early years children having lower mobility, muscle strength and fine motor skills, linked to an increase in screen time. Is there increasing evidence of this? | Yes if babies and toddlers are sat on screen not exploring their environment then it has impacts on their development. There is a collection of all the evidence of screen time harms for children in the HPFSS briefing documents. https://healthprofessionalsforsaferscreens.org/research-and-learning/ |
| Are parental-control apps actually effective, or just a false sense of security? | There are some good parental control apps out there but most only have a limited time of effectivity. Children will be able to get round them and they will share how to amongst their friends. The way to keep your child safe online is to restrict access to the internet or supervise it when they do have access. Simple steps like ensuring screens are only used in communal areas of the house and not behind closed doors helps. Layer your internet security from router to device to make it harder to get round parental controls. Ensure you have open and honest conversations with your child about what they are seeing online and how it makes them feel. |
| How do you advise parents who rely on screens for behavioural management or childcare relief? | Have a non judemental conversation and explain the why about this. We are all guilty of using screens to get 5 minutes peace but if this is used a lot then it affects the childs ability to self regulate their emotions. This will have impacts later on eg at school if the child is used to being able to calm down with a screen-they will have problems regulating themselves in the school environment. We know that a child using more than 2 hours screen time a day is more likely to display ADHD behaviours-so this just feeds the cycle. We know that children with additional needs are more susceptable to the harms of screens and social media and this is the group where screens may be used for behavioural management. Please see https://healthprofessionalsforsaferscreens.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/THE-EVIDENCE-1.pdf |
| I have a 14month old toddle,how can i enforce safety for screens when we are away as parents and they are in the care of a nanny. | Have an open and honest conversation about your expectations-I’m sure you already have agreements about other areas of childcare that you would like your nanny to adhere to so why is this different. You would set expectations about feeding your toddler and behaviour management. Include discussions about technoference as this area is often overlooked. https://healthprofessionalsforsaferscreens.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Technoference_Poster-2.pdf |
| How can clinicians discuss screen use without appearing judgemental or out of touch with modern family realities? | We are trained to have conversations about difficult subjects with parents so why is this different? Use the same techniques you would having a discussion about weight management and eating, drug use, vaccinations, medication compliance etc. |
| Would the new UK Online safety act help with some of the unexpected graphic content exposure? | NO! The online safety act was a good first step but does not go far enough to protect our children. As Louise mentioned in the presentation the place the majority of porn is seen by children is via social media conversational groups eg whatsapp, snapchat and also platforms such as instagram and tiktok. The online safety act will put some barriers around those children and young people who are actively looking for graphic material on an internet search or logging into a porn site (although they can get round it by using a VPN). Please be aware that most young people come across unsuitable material by chance or because its been sent on a group chat-the online safety act does not stop this. |
| Thank you for this timely webinar. What’s your recommendation for television screen time for toddlers and young children? Kid’s channels and you tube or Netflix etc? | The recommendation is that Babies under 2 do not have any screen time. It is of no benefit to them apart from a video call with a family member or loved one where they are actively engaging. There is no educational benefit to apps and programmes aimed at babies and toddlers and they do not help their visual development-they hinder it. High screen use in pre school children can cause problems with emotional regulation. We would recommend that youtube is not used but if it is make sure “autoplay” is disabled so the content doesnt keep going and going. Please see: https://healthprofessionalsforsaferscreens.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/THE-EVIDENCE-1.pdf and https://healthprofessionalsforsaferscreens.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/12_Sept__EY_thrive.pdf and https://healthprofessionalsforsaferscreens.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/%C2%A90-5_poster_HPFSS.pdf |
| Is television screen time different from mobile device screen time in terms of harm? | Link to answer above about gen X |
| In Scotland, every child from P7 gets an ipad from school. Lessons are delivered using screen time and homework is done on it. Is the situation similar in the rest of UK? | Some areas of the UK have moved to give each child an ipad. There have been recent news reports about what harm has been done in Scotland by doing this. Children have been able to watch innapropriate content on the school issued ipad. It’s a wake up call but the education system is behind on this one. Ed Tech has been rolled out and they need to start realising the harms. As parents and paediatricians we have a huge voice in this now that we know the harms of screen time for our children. As a parent you are within your rights to decline screen based homework and ask for it to be set on paper. |
| Hi Louise and Kelly – fantastic presentation. Q – the data to me looks really clear and strong – are we now ready to challenge Dr Whitty to start a public health campaign? | Health Professionals for Safer Screens have already approached parliament. We are hoping for action from the Royal Colleges this autumn which will hopefully be a strong message to Chris Witty. |
| Is there a scale of what’s ‘bad’ screen time? For example is watching Bluey as bad as accessing random content or playing GTA? Is screen size/proximity to face a factor? | Its all in context. The safest screen time your child can have is the screen time supervised by you as a parent. It’s the same with gaming. Be mindful of the time spent on screens and the recommendations around this for different ages-bluey is aimed at toddlers but actually under 2s are recommended to have no screen time. |
| I had a personal experience with my child who had some difficulty speaking and learning but watching some educational screens has significantly boosted my child’s speaking and learning skills as well as social skills How do we cope with such an improvement with screen? |
Please see early years answer above. Note that as paediatrcians we are seeing an increasing number of early years children speaking with an americn accent after watching programmes like “Miss Rachel” |
| What are your thoughts about how paediatricians/college lobby the government to think about screens/in school- expectation of secondary school pupils to have a device for homework, so much research for homework relies on internet sources, quizzes. | Please see school answer above |
| This is an active conversation in schools currently we need to join up and support to work together to safeguard our children. They are starting to look at this tide of education away from tech. Some leading schools have actively moved back to paper. | This is good to hear a return to paper |
| They are in school for less than 20% of any year …we need to move together with parents | Agree-parents have a huge collective voice here |
| I know parents who ‘track’ their children with Apple Air Tags, rather than by way of the child having a device! | See tracking answer above |
| im thinking of how to balance child care with membership/fellowship college exams. Did you mention that it would be detrimental to look after the child (in a safe place at home) whilst studying on my laptop for these exams? | Thank you for your vulnerability on this question. We assume you are linking to technoference? You sound like you have awareness of your tech use in front of your child which is commendable. Please see info on technoference, and also video by Dr Emily with soem hints and tips about connection with your child when you need to use devices. https://healthprofessionalsforsaferscreens.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Technoference_Poster-2.pdf and https://youtu.be/edXUWuhBhn4 |
| Thank you for a brilliant presentation, watching with colleagues in Paeds ED and raising some interesting questions. How do we help to lobby regulators to ensure this public health information is prioritised and shared with parents, and how do we pressure companies to make social media a safer space for children? | It’s a huge issue. Every voice here makes a difference-please join HPFSS |
| can you share the link to the poster | All posters and evidence found here: https://healthprofessionalsforsaferscreens.org/resources/ |
| Could the college put this presentation on their front page! For all who come to the page looking for advice | We’d love the RCPCH to consider putting a headline link on their front page given this is such a hot topic at the moment and HCPs are actively looking for advice about it. |
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Presentation slides
RCPCH Grand Round: Kids and screens what’s all the fuss? (PowerPoint)
Health Professionals for Safer Screens
As health professionals, we see first-hand the impacts of children’s addictive screen use and access to harmful content online. Join us in our call to instigate real and urgent change.
Visit the Health Professionals for Safer Screens site
View and download resources for professionals
View and download resources for parents
EiSMART
EiSMART is an evidence based framework to give high risk babies the best start in life. We span all aspects of a child’s development: Sensory, Motor, Attention and Regulation, and Relationships. Professionals and parents work Together to support premature and sick infants from birth (Early Intervention).
Flippgen
The Flippgen mission is to empower Gen-Z and Gen-A to build healthier relationships with the digital world through peer-led education, youth-driven campaigns, and a connected community.
Related resources
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How to Manage: Child Mental Health
This course will develop your skills and knowledge in effectively managing general mental health problems encountered in day-to-day clinics and increase your confidence in selecting appropriate interventions to support patients and their families.
ACAMH Learn by The Association for Child and Adolescent Mental Health
The Association for Child and Adolescent Mental Health is delighted to announce the launch of ACAMH Learn, a new, completely free CPD platform aimed at all those working in child and adolescent mental health and related areas.
Post-webinar feedback
Continued Professional Development (CPD)
We do not issue CPD certificates for webinars or podcasts, as we are unable to verify participation.
However, you are still able to record as a CPD activity as you normally would, detailing what you have learned and how the learning will benefit your practice.
When recording the activity, delegates should focus on the reflection and detail the following:
- What did you learn?
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If you have any questions, please contact the CPD team
If you use the RCPCH CPD Diary, you can click here to visit the diary and record your learning: Log your learning on the RCPCH CPD Diary
Speakers
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Dr Louise Milne
Consultant Paediatrician, Portsmouth Hospitals University Trust
Dr Milne believes that every parent deserves to be able to make informed decisions on how to parent their child. She has been actively promoting safer screens with community leaders and families. Both Dr Milne and Dr Brown would encourage any health professionals to join the health professionals for safer screens group through the 'Join Us' button on the website
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Dr Kelly Brown
Consultant Neonatologist, University Hospital Southampton
Dr Brown has been working on educating parents, health professionals, teachers and school leaders on the harms of screens for our kids. She is a member of Health Professionals For Safer Screens and with her background in Neonatology has a particular interest in improving information for pregnant women and the early years group.
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